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Read about the latest news and information from Mastaplex, the makers of Mastatest.

July 2024

Reducing antibiotic usage for mastitis

New data shared at the British Mastitis Conference in 2024 shows that a farmer utilising Mastatest would potentially be able to rule out the need for antibiotic treatment in 40% of all presenting clinical mastitis cases.  

Identifying mastitis cases where antibiotics are not beneficial:

The 2024 dataset showed:

  • 12% of all clinical mastitis samples tested had no bacterial growth;

  • 26% of samples contained only E. coli or other gram-negative bacteria; and

  • 2% contained only Klebsiella/Serratia species

Antibiotic sensitivity testing confirmed that those samples where E. coli/other gram-negative, or Klebsiella/Serratia were the causative bacteria, 100% were identified as having a low chance of responding to benzylpenicillin or cloxacillin (Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) = 4 or >4), and >98% were identified as having a low chance of responding to cephalexin. This antibiotic sensitivity data underlines that treating these mastitis cases with antibiotics is not likely to be beneficial.   

Taken together, a farmer utilising Mastatest would be able to rule out the need for antibiotic treatment in 40% of all presenting clinical mastitis cases.  

Identifying the bacterial species, and the right antibiotic:

Other common bacteria identified were  Strep. uberis (16%), Strep. dysgalactiae (4%) other Strep. species (6%), other gram-positive (8%), Coagulase negative staphylococci (8%), and Staph. aureus (4%).  

Detailed data on antibiotic sensitivity again showed that for most bacterial species there is no ‘one-size-fits all’ choice of optimal antibiotic. This supports the rationale of having sensitivity data to inform the correct selection. 

Find out more:

Data from the expanding Mastatest cohort of clinical mastitis samples within the UK presents a unique and ongoing opportunity to understand the causes of mastitis and ensure the most effective treatment and management plans are being implemented on-farm.  

To request a copy of the abstract, or learn about how easy using the Mastatest diagnostic system could be for your farm, contact us today